Legal Situation: Am I liable?
My daughter's boyfriend bought her a computer for Christmas. She already had one, so she asked me to sell it for her on Ebay, which I did. Three months later, the buyer contacted me saying he just found out that the computer was bought with a stolen credit card. Daughter's boyfriend is long gone. The buyer is threatening me with filing criminal charges, for dealing in stolen property, mail fraud, and anything else he can think of. Neither my daughter nor I had any inclination that the ex-boyfriend bought the PC with a stolen credit card.Should I be concerned?
Answers:
All US states also have laws regarding receipt of stolen property; however, there usually is no minimum dollar amount in many jurisdictions, and, of course, the requirement in Federal law regarding interstate commerce does not apply. Also, in many states (Ohio, for example), the burden to prove criminal intent is not as stringent or is nonexistent. This means that one can be charged with the crime - usually a minor degree of felony - even if the person did not know the item in question was stolen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/stolen_good...
Shuki Alburati - very similar story, arrested on suspicion of two felony counts of receiving stolen property (resold stolen laptop on eBay), and he was jailed in lieu of $20,000 bail. The next day, however, prosecutors lodged a single misdemeanor count against him. (Can't find the final disposition of the case, but you get the gist).
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=...
Seems unlikely that you would be liable except to refund what you were paid for the computer once the person who is threatening you provides some sort of proof that his/her story is true, and can prove that they had to give up the computer.
On the surface, it sounds like they are trying to scam you, but maybe not.
Absolutely be concerned. He has every right to file formal charges against you.
Contact a lawyer to find out your recourse.
What a champ she had for a boyfriend. Bought her a hot christmas present on a stolen credit card. First, be thankful that he is long gone from your life.
Look at the chain of people involved:
a. Credit card company
b. person who's card was stolen
c. initial computer store
d. boyfriend
e. daughter
f. you
g. ebay buyer
The credit card company is out the money initially and if any charges are filed, they will be very interested in receiving their money back. Be careful not to simply agree to refund the money to the ebay buyer and take the computer back. That may seem to be the easiest thing to do, but it still leaves you open to prosecution from the credit card company.
Be thankful that you never paid anything for the computer(as it was a gift from the dead beat). I would recommend working with the credit card company to assist them in recovering the value of their loss from the dead beat boyfriend. That way, they will be able to prosecute him and not go after you.
As others have said, speak to a lawyer or a detective for information/guidance on how to best solve this situation.
You should be extremely concerned. Get off Y/A and talk to a lawyer.
You should be concerned, but it seems, based on what you provided, that prosecutors and the eBay buyer will understand that you're not the one responsible, as long as you cooperate with them to get this boyfriend. I would go to the police with the information you have now to avoid them knocking on your door.
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